20a. - 20k. Divine Mercy Section - Apostolate for Family Consecration

The Sacrament of Reconciliation became a regular and important part of her life, and she
grew in her understanding of it. She learned that Confession is much more than just asking
and receiving forgiveness. “We should desire two kinds of profit from Holy Confession,” she
explained:
1. We come to Confession to be healed;
2. We come to be educated — like a small child, our soul has constant need of education
(Diary, 377).
She realized that this need of our souls for education — through the grace of God and
through the guidance of the confessor — is vital to our spiritual growth. We cannot simply
rely on ourselves:
“…on its own strength, the soul will not go far; it will exert itself greatly and will do
nothing for the glory of God; it will err continually, because our mind is darkened and does
not know how to discern its own affairs” (Diary, 377).
Another important lesson Sister learned was to pray for her confessor:
“…I came to understand one thing: that I must pray much for each of my confessors, that
he might obtain the light of the Holy Spirit, for when I approach the confessional without
first praying fervently, the confessor does not understand me very well. Father encouraged
me to pray fervently for these intentions, that God would give better knowledge and
understanding of the things He is asking of me” (Diary, 647).
Through Sister Faustina, Christ Himself instructs us how to prepare for the reception of
the sacrament:
“…when you go to confession, to this fountain of My mercy, the Blood and Water which
came forth from My Heart always flows down upon your soul and ennobles it. Every time
you go to confession, immerse yourself entirely in My mercy, with great trust, so that I may
pour the bounty of My grace upon your soul” (Diary, 1602).
Repeatedly, He emphasizes that the confessional is the place of the greatest mercy, and
that it is He, Himself, Mercy Incarnate, who waits for us there:
“When you approach the confessional, know this, that I Myself am waiting there for you. I
am only hidden by the priest, but I Myself act in your soul. Here the misery of the soul
meets the God of Mercy” (Diary, 1602)
“My daughter, just as you prepare in My presence, so also you make your confession before
Me. The person of the priest is, for Me, only a screen. Never analyze what sort of a priest it
is that I am making use of, open your soul in confession as you would to Me, and I will fill
it with My light” (Diary, 1725).
He stresses, too, that no matter how great our sin, His mercy is greater and can restore
us to His grace:
“Were a soul like a decaying corpse so that from a human standpoint, there would be no
[hope of] restoration and everything would already be lost, it is not so with God. The
miracle of Divine Mercy restores that soul in full” (Diary, 1448).
Our sinfulness, then, cannot keep us from receiving His Mercy. Only our fear and refusal
to trust in Him can block His love. So Our Lord urges Sister Faustina:
“Pray for souls that they be not afraid to approach the tribunal of My Mercy. Do not grow
weary of praying for sinners…Tell souls that from this fount of mercy souls draw graces
solely with the vessel of trust. If their trust is great, there is no limit to My generosity”
(Diary, 975, 1602).
The Church, likewise, continues to exhort us to make frequent use of this Sacrament of
Reconciliation, even monthly, to draw on this infinite fount of mercy. John Paul II has a
special concern that we make use of the Sacrament and be healed of one of the great sins of
our age — the loss of the sense of sin.